Evening and Morning
By Charles Haddon Spurgeon
March 16
MORNING
ÒI am a stranger
with thee.Ó — Psalm 39:12
Yes, O Lord, with Thee, but not to Thee. All my
natural alienation from Thee, Thy grace has effectually removed; and now, in
fellowship with Thyself, I walk through this sinful world as a pilgrim in a
foreign country. Thou art a stranger in Thine own
world. Man forgets Thee, dishonours Thee, sets up new
laws and alien customs, and knows Thee not. When Thy dear Son came unto His
own, His own received Him not. He was in the world, and the
world was made by Him, and the world knew Him not. Never was foreigner
so speckled a bird among the denizens of any land as Thy beloved Son among His
motherÕs brethren. It is no marvel, then, if I who
live the life of Jesus, should be unknown and a stranger here below. Lord, I
would not be a citizen where Jesus was an alien. His pierced hand has loosened
the cords which once bound my soul to earth, and now I
find myself a stranger in the land. My speech seems to these Babylonians among
whom I dwell an outlandish tongue, my manners are singular, and my actions are
strange. A Tartar would be more at home in Cheapside than I could ever be in
the haunts of sinners. But here is the sweetness of my lot: I am a stranger
with Thee. Thou art my fellow-sufferer, my fellowpilgrim.
Oh, what joy to wander in such blessed society! My heart burns within me by the
way when Thou dost speak to me, and though I be a
sojourner, I am far more blest than those who sit on thrones, and far more at
home than those who dwell in their ceiled houses.
ÒTo me remains nor place, nor time:
My country is in every clime;
I can be calm and free from care
On any shore, since God is there.Ó
ÒWhile place we seek, or place we shun,
The soul finds happiness in none:
But with a God to guide our way,
ÕTis equal joy to go or stay.Ó
EVENING
ÒKeep back Thy servant also from presumptuous sins.Ó — Psalm
19:13
Such was
the prayer of the Òman after GodÕs own heart.Ó Did holy David need to pray
thus? How needful, then, must such a prayer be for us babes
in grace! It is as if he said, ÒKeep me back, or I shall rush headlong over the
precipice of sin.Ó Our evil nature, like an illtempered
horse, is apt to run away. May the grace of God put the bridle upon it, and
hold it in, that it rush not into mischief. What might not the best of us do if
it were not for the checks which the Lord sets upon us
both in providence and in grace! The psalmistÕs prayer is directed against the
worst form of sin — that which is done with
deliberation and wilfulness. Even the holiest need to
be Òkept backÓ from the vilest transgressions. It is a solemn thing to find the
apostle Paul warning saints against the most loathsome sins. ÒMortify therefore
your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate
affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry.Ó What! do saints want warning against such sins as these? Yes, they
do. The whitest robes, unless their purity be
preserved by divine grace, will be defiled by the blackest spots. Experienced
Christian, boast not in your experience; you will trip yet if you look away
from Him who is able to keep you from falling. Ye whose love is fervent, whose
faith is constant, whose hopes are bright, say not, ÒWe shall never sin,Ó but
rather cry, ÒLead us not into temptation.Ó There is enough tinder in the heart
of the best of men to light a fire that shall burn to the lowest hell, unless God
shall quench the sparks as they fall. Who would have dreamed that righteous Lot
could be found drunken, and committing uncleanness? Hazael
said, ÒIs Thy servant a dog, that he should do this thing?Ó and we are very apt
to use the same self-righteous question. May infinite wisdom cure us of the
madness of self-confidence.